Early guesses? 3 week old polish sexing

[Chickmomz]

Well, well, well - we meet again rhubarb, peaches, squash and pickles....

I'm going to keep the two I was certain on before at 100% - peaches and rhubarb. And I'll probably swap the other two.

Pickles - cockerel - pretty certain here.
Squash - pullet - BUT, this one is still up in the air. I know it looks like a pullet, but I still have my doubts.

I'm not going to lock these answers in yet Regis, but if you can send some side profile shots ill send final answers

Haha! I have attached a couple pics from the side. They are not labeled, but Pickles is on my arm furthest from the camera. (Peaches is the closer one to the camera). And Squash is alone in the 2 photos.

Squash showed waddles first and then all of a sudden had a very pullet-looking crest. We are suspicious as well.

Thanks again for hopping on to provide insight - we adore these chicks

 

[MrsMeanGreen]

Loving the pictures of your babies

 

[BastyPutt]

Yes you got it. The second two pictured together are your cockerels

 

[Chickmomz]

Yes you got it. The second two pictured together are your cockerels

Thank you, that being said… how many pullets would we need to add to have a happy flock? let’s assume we have 2 cockerels and 2 pullets at home now. I am getting mixed messages online about the minimum number of hens per rooster.
*30sq foot coop with a run that will accommodate more than the required space per bird.

 

[BastyPutt]

4 hens or less/rooster = over breeding.
10 hens or more/rooster = not all eggs will be fertile.

I can't remember specifically the square footage/chicken. I think i remember @JedJackson having some good insight on this recently.

 

[JedJackson]

4 hens or less/rooster = over breeding.
10 hens or more/rooster = not all eggs will be fertile.

I can't remember specifically the square footage/chicken. I think i remember @JedJackson having some good insight on this recently.

The bare minimum is 4 square feet of coop space and 8 square feet of run space per large fowl chicken. The more you can provide, the happier they will be. Birds with plenty of space are less likely to fight and less likely to feather pluck.

Personality makes a big difference with how many females are needed per rooster. I had, at one point, a very skittish Polish rooster and 5 Polish hens. Well, he was picked on by four of them and never fought to establish dominance with them. As a result, I had him with just the one hen, and it worked just fine. Some of his sons, though, were more confident and needed more hens. I think 5 to 7 per male is optimal for fertility with an active Polish rooster, but it's a trial and error thing.

 

[BastyPutt]

I had, at one point, a very skittish Polish rooster and 5 Polish hens. Well, he was picked on by four of them and never fought to establish dominance with them. As a result, I had him with just the one hen, and it worked just fine. Some of his sons, though, were more confident and needed more hens. I think 5 to 7 per male is optimal for fertility with an active Polish rooster, but it's a trial and error thing.

Great example of why breed stereotypes or expectations are always off.

Start somewhere, and adjust as needed.

 

[Chickmomz]

Great example of why breed stereotypes or expectations are always off.

Start somewhere, and adjust as needed.

@JedJackson thank you both for your insight! I will likely post more photos along the way

 

[Chickmomz]

@JedJackson thank you both for your insight! I will likely post more photos along the way

Hello from the Polish! I believe they are around 6 weeks now and will be moving to their coop soon!

Main reason for the update is that - from the top (I know this isn’t an angle you’ve mentioned as an important one) rhubarb, pickles, and peaches look like they have very similar crests to each other. While squash has a visibly different hairdo.

I am wondering if Rhubarb may look more like a cockerel now?

To refresh- I believe your previous guesses were:
Peaches- cockerel
Pickles - cockerel
Rhubarb - pullet
Squash - pullet but keeping an eye on haha

Each chick has a few photos except peaches, who wasn’t feeling like being photographed today - more interested in snacking

Thanks again for checking in on our chicks and providing any thoughts

 

[BastyPutt]

Peaches- cockerel
Pickles - cockerel
Rhubarb - pullet
Squash - pullet but keeping an eye on haha

Yep - we will keep these still. Squash can move toward the pullet range now. She really changed a lot! Probably the most convincing of all at this point!